Ever since Google became a thing, it's been known to use PageRank to rank web pages, and it's still one of the key factors in its ranking algorithm today. Alas, Google hadn't been updating the public version of PageRank for several years, until last year they closed off access to it completely. This took away the most reliable metric SEOs used to evaluate site authority and link quality. Since then, we've been working on our own PageRank alternative at SEO PowerSuite — an accurate metric that would reflect the ranking power of any page on the web. And today — ta-da! — InLink Rank is finally out.

What is Google PageRank?

The logic behind Google PageRank is to rank web pages according to their importance, or link popularity, determined by the number and quality of the page's inlinks. The idea is that every page on the web has a vote (that can vary in weight, depending on the page's own PageRank), and that it can cast its vote for other pages by linking out to them. The weight of each vote is diluted in proportion to the number of links on the page.

Let's say page A has a PageRank of 10 and links out to 5 other pages. According to the original PageRank formula, Google would consider that 85% of the page's PageRank (8.5 in our example) gets passed on to the pages it links out to. Thus, each of the 5 pages it links to receives 8.5/5, or 1.7 out of the page's original score of 10.

What is InLink Rank?

Like Google's PageRank, SEO PowerSuite's InLink Rank is a score that estimates link popularity, or the importance of web pages, determined by the number and quality of incoming links to the page (both external and internal).

How is InLink Rank calculated?

Inlink Rank is based off the same algorithm as the original Google PageRank and is determined by the number and weight of incoming links to a page. It's a score on a logarithmic scale from 0 and 100, which means it's easier to grow one's InLink Rank from 20 to 30 than it is from 80 to 90. InLink Rank is being re-calculated non-stop; on average, a certain site's InLink Rank can be expected to be updated at least once a month. As InLink Rank gets updated, it also expands its index, calculating the score for new pages that weren't previously assigned an InLink Rank.

Where can I try InLink Rank?

To give InLink Rank a try, simply update SEO PowerSuite to the latest version (or download it here), and add the InLink Rank and Domain InLink Rank columns to your workspaces in WebSite Auditor, SEO SpyGlass, or LinkAssistant.

InLink Rank will show you just how much importance each of your pages has in search engines' eyes. With monthly InLink Rank updates, you can easily track how your site's ranking power grows over time, and see which of your SEO efforts make the biggest difference.

Where to find it: In any SEO PowerSuite tool, under the Domain Strength module.

See the value of every backlink to your site.

By a high InLink Rank, you can easily spot the most valuable links in your profile. Similarly, a low InLink Rank is a great way to identify low quality, spammy links you may want to get rid of to stay safe from Penguin and manual penalties.

Where to find it: In SEO SpyGlass, under the Backlinks module. To add the InLink Rank and Domain InLink Rank columns to the view, right-click on the header of any column and select these factors.

Analyze link prospects' authority.

When Google closed off access to PageRank, link prospecting became a complicated task that involved way more manual work than you could afford. Well, forget that. With InLink Rank, you can instantly see how authoritative any prospect is — and easily pick the best link opportunities.

Where to find it: In LinkAssistant, under the Prospects module. To add the InLink Rank and Domain InLink Rank columns to your workspace, right-click the header of any column and select these factors.

Improve the distribution of ranking power among your pages.

The link juice that flows in to a certain page of your site then gets passed on to your other pages via internal links. With InLink Rank in WebSite Auditor, you can see exactly how the ranking power is distributed — and improve the authority of your most important pages by smarter internal linking.

Where to find it: In WebSite Auditor, under Site Structure > Pages. To add the InLink Rank and Domain InLink Rank columns to your workspace, right-click the header of any column and select these factors.

Analyze competitors in-depth.

With SEO PowerSuite's InLink Rank, you can estimate the authority of your competitors' websites, see which of their backlinks bring in the most ranking power, and which of their pages enjoy the most link love — and learn from their strategies!

Where to find it: In all SEO PowerSuite tools, by creating a project for a competitor's site.

Rely on other improved, laser-accurate metrics.

Without an accurate PageRank alternative, many other SEO metrics have become less reliable. With InLink Rank out, numerous SEO PowerSuite metrics (Keyword Difficulty, Penalty Risk, Domain Strength, and Link Value) now have a solid foundation for accurate, relevant data you can count on.

Where to find it: In all SEO PowerSuite apps.

Instantly see the SEO weight of any page on the Web.

Like all new features, InLink Rank is free for all current SEO PowerSuite users. You can try it yourself in SEO PowerSuite's free version, and get access to InLink Rank for an unlimited number of sites, pages, and backlinks by getting an SEO PowerSuite license.